Smallville: The Request
by ArlyssTolero
Summary: When Clark Kent's parting comments after requesting to borrow her meteor rock necklace scare Lana Lang, her pleading request to know what's going on has a different outcome than in canon.


**_Disclaimer: I don't own Smallville. _**

**_A/N: This is the first of many one-shots I will probably write as I re-familiarize myself with "Smallville" and its cast of characters. For those who are new to my stories, welcome. Outside of a one-shot I did ages ago that has since been deleted, I've not written a single "Smallville" story and so I'm a bit nervous. I'm fairly sure it's a different crowd from those who write/read "Arrow" stories, which has been my main focus for ages. _**

**_I hope everyone enjoys this story. It's the only one that's popped in my head so far._**

**_Edit 2/15/2020 - For some dolt reason I'd had a reference to CLark's X-Ray VIsion while he was powerless. My bad. It's fixed now. _**

Smallville:

The Request

By

ArlyssTolero

Clark Kent entered the old Talon Theatre on Main Street, having been driving around looking for Lana and hazarding a guess she was here, collecting old memories; he had never thought he might one day be asking her the question he was going to put forth. Lana, who had been rolling up an old movie poster, turned as he came in. "I was driving by, saw the light was on. I figured it was you," Clark said as he approached her, instinctively tensing up just a bit even though he knew that, at least at the moment, the meteor rock necklace that Lana wore around her neck wouldn't, _couldn't_ hurt him as it had in the past.

Lana, her expression worried (she had heard about Clark's encounter with Eric Summers), finished rolling up the poster and set it on the counter. "Are you okay?" she asked as Clark set his hands on the counter of the theatre's old concessions stand. "I called the house earlier, but your mom said that you were asleep. I was really scared." And she had been, more than she had expected to be. She knew she had been getting closer to Clark in the past several months, but she hadn't expected it to be so intense. Clark had gotten involved several times with these meteor-infected people, Lana knew, and up until this thing with Eric Summers, he had never been hurt.

"I'm sorry," Clark said, and he meant it. He didn't want Lana worrying about him; it was his choice to get involved trying to stop Eric that got him hurt.

"How do you think Eric got that strong overnight?" Lana asked him, wondering how much Clark really knew about these meteor-infected people he tended to face off with, especially when they were threatening his friends. Clark glanced at her, like he wanted to say something, but then shrugged, and Lana internally sighed. Clark Kent was one tough nut to crack, as her aunt might say.

"I have no idea," Clark finally said after a brief delay.

"Can you imagine waking up one morning and having powers?" Lana asked with an incredulous smile. While in years to come she would become jaded and even harsh in her view on people with powers thanks to the consistency of attacks upon her person, at the present time Lana was still a bit overawed by the fact that something that seemed like it was right out of a science fiction story was real and happening in her small town.

"It's scary," Clark whispered, causing the smile to fade from Lana's features and a speculative frown to form in its stead. How would he know something like that? "I guess," Clark tacked on quickly. "I mean, look at Eric, it hasn't helped him."

"That's true," Lana replied, a soft smile returning to her features. "But I still always wished that I could fly."

"Yeah, that'd be something, Lana," Clark replied, his mind going back to when he floated over his bed and wondering again if flight was one of his powers and his fear of heights was holding that one back. Even as he said and thought this, his gaze focused on the meteor rock necklace around Lana's neck.

Lana got worried with how Clark was acting. "What is it?" she asked him, resisting the urge to put a hand on one of his broad shoulders.

"It's your necklace," Clark replied. "I never realized before how beautiful it was until now." Lana glanced down, touching her necklace with her fingers, then looked back up at Clark as he spoke again. "This is gonna sound really strange," he said. "Could I borrow it?"

"Sure," Lana said after a moment of debate that played out across her features. She unclasped the necklace and handed it to Clark. He reached out to take it, but his hand closed around hers instead, again worrying her. Something strange was going on, and Lana had the sneaking suspicion this had something to do with Eric. "What do you need it for?" she asked.

"It's complicated," Clark replied. Then he said something that sent chills down her spine. "Whatever happens to me, I promise you'll get this back."

"You're scaring me again," Lana said, her eyes meeting his. "What is going on?"

In another time, another life, Clark would have brushed off Lana's scared question. But something deep inside of him stirred and he _wanted_ her to know the truth, at least a part of it. "Do you remember what you said about waking up one day with powers?" he said softly. Lana nodded slowly, entwining her fingers with his around the necklace. "I know that it's scary because I have lived with it every day of my life, lived with the fear that I would accidentally hurt someone that I cared about. When I found out about what the meteor shower had done to people, I felt I was given a purpose. To use my gifts to help people. When I grabbed Eric on the dam, lightning hit us both and transferred my powers to him." Clark looked down at the necklace, Lana's eyes following his. "All my life, there's only one thing that's weakened me, one thing that's made me sick. Meteor rock. Eric has my strengths. Maybe he has my weakness, too."

"That's how you've been able to stop these people without getting hurt like with Eric," Lana realized. "You're one of them."

"No, I was born with my powers," Clark said. "That's why I have more than one. My parents have helped me learn how to control them, but it's always felt like a wall between me and the rest of the world… between me and you." Clark dropped his hand, slowly pulling away from Lana. "I need to find Eric, put an end to this."

"Be safe," Lana whispered, and Clark gave her a lopsided smile that had her heart doing somersaults.

"I've got a good luck charm with me," he said, raising her necklace in his hand again before turning and walking out of the Talon.

**_A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed this little one-shot._**

**_Now, full confession: I came late to the party with "Smallville". It was already airing Season 8 by the time I caught up to it, and so I binge-watched the Clana years for the most part. It made it easier to swallow than I'm sure it was for those who had to painstakingly watch Seasons 1-8 and deal with the melodrama between these two and, later, Lex. _**

**_But I've found the relationship teases worked well in the early seasons and I figure I can write the occasional one-shot covering this. _**


End file.
